Friday, December 15, 2006

SPORTS >>Lonoke ladies hammer Marianna

IN SHORT: The Lady Jackrabbits had no trouble at all against the Lady Trojans, but the boys faltered in the third quarter to drop what was a close game to that point.

By JASON KINGLeader sports writer

It was a conference split for Lonoke Tuesday night in Marianna. The Lady Jackrabbits kept their league record perfect with a dominant 68-14 win over the Lady Trojans. The Jackrabbits suffered one bad quarter against the Trojans, and payed for the slip with a 57-47 loss, their first conference loss of the year.

The Lady Jackrabbits scored more points in the first quarter than Marianna scored in the entire contest. Junior guard Haley O’Cain had a career night, especially from behind the arc. Cain scored 16 of her total 18 points in the opening quarter, including four out of four three-point shots. She also hit 3 of 4 goals during her brief time on the floor. After a lead of over 30 points at the half, the clock ran continuously during the second half, and the Lady ‘Rabbit starters sat out the final two periods.

“It wasn’t real close, it was pretty much over before it started,” Lady Jackrabbits coach Nathan Morris said. “Haley had one of those shooting nights where you really feel like you can’t miss. We pressed them on their first couple of possessions, and they struggled to get shots off.” The Lady Trojans would continue to struggle from the field throughout the game, only managing 5 of 27 from the field.

The win improves the Lady ‘Rabbits’ record to 6-5 overall and 3-0 in 2-4A Conference play.

The Jackrabbits outplayed Marianna by one point through the first half, but no field goals in the third quarter for Lonoke allowed the Trojans to pull away. The difference in the game would be fought out on the boards, as Marianna took advantage of second and third shot opportunities, while denying the ‘Rabbits the same luxury on the other end.

“They really pounded us on the boards,” Jackrabbits coach Wes Swift said. “We shot pretty well in the first half, but when the shots started to not fall for us, we were not getting second chance shots, where they were.”

The two teams were in a dead heat at 17 all after the first quarter. It was more of the same in the second frame, but Lonoke managed one more point to take a 32-31 lead at the half.

It all came unraveled in the third quarter, however. All of Lonoke’s five points in the period came from free-throw shots, as Marianna tacked on 15 points to take control of the game. The ‘Rabbits regained their composure for the final quarter, but Marianna would not allow any kind of comeback, outscoring Lonoke 11-10 in the fourth to secure the win.

Stanley Staggers was the only double-figure scorer with 12 points in the game. Bradley Spencer and Clarence Harris each added seven points for Lonoke.

Lonoke hosted Mountain View last night after Leader deadlines for two very important conference games. Look for details of those games in the Wednesday edition of The Leader.